What Is the New York Rangers’ Dream 3-Year Gameplan?

Had it not been for Chris Kreider’s miraculous third-period hat trick in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Rangers were well on their way to blowing a 3-0 series lead to the Carolina Hurricanes. The Blueshirts would meet their match in the next round, as the Florida Panthers outplayed them, making them struggle to even get the puck out of their own zone.

It was downhill from there, as the Rangers missed the 2025 playoffs altogether and became one of the NHL’s worst teams this season. The only bright spot? The chance to land a future star in this year’s NHL Draft.

Everything seems to be doom and gloom on Broadway these days, but what can the Rangers do to get back to winning ways over the next few years?

The Tank Succeeds

It starts on May 5 with the NHL Draft Lottery. The Rangers have the third-best odds of landing the first pick. If they luck out and get the pick, they’ll be able to draft Gavin McKenna, the top prospect in this year’s class. After trading Artemi Panarin earlier this season, McKenna might be able to help recuperate some of what was lost.

McKenna will join a young core of wingers including Gabe Perreault, Alexis Lafrenière, and Will Cuylle. Hopefully, McKenna can learn a thing or two from all of them and vice versa.

From there, the Rangers will still need to tank for another season to land another top pick. This pick should be used on a defenseman. The current top prospect in the projected class of 2027 is defenseman Landon Dupont of the Western Hockey League’s Everett Silvertips. Of course, getting two number-one picks in a row is highly unlikely, but remember, this is the dream plan.

Preparing For Massive Moves

At this point, the Rangers must get out of the tanking mindset. The young players on the roster need to taste some success. They need to start gelling as best as they can. They’ll learn to work with veterans on the team, such as J.T. Miller, Mika Zibanejad, Vincent Trocheck, and Adam Fox. The team should be projected to make the playoffs as a wild-card team. They also need to show pending free agents that they are a competent team.

However, before the trade deadline of this 2028 season, general manager Chris Drury should implement massive shake-ups to prepare for the future. Mika Zibanejad and J.T. Miller are both on big contracts through the 2030 season, contracts the Rangers cannot afford if they are to make a title run.

It may not be a bad idea for the team to explore replacing Drury during this imaginary timeline, either. He traded Chris Kreider and Artemi Panarin, a former top-five Hart Trophy candidate, for minimal returns. Furthermore, he failed to make any notable acquisitions during the Rangers’ quest for a cup in 2024.

Trade Technicalities

At this point, Miller will have a 15-team no-trade clause, and Zibanejad will still have a full no-trade clause. The Rangers must desperately figure out a way to trade them to a place where they’ll be happy, or as a last resort, negotiate a buyout.

Hopefully, at least one of those two players will be willing to accept a trade to the Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs, or Edmonton Oilers. Brady Tkachuk, Auston Matthews, and Connor McDavid are all projected to be free agents in the 2028 offseason. Why not get a jump on it and trade for one of them? It gives the Rangers a chance to extend their contracts or, at the very least, to let them see what it’s like to play in the Big Apple and hopefully convince them to re-sign.

Winning the 2028 Free Agency Sweepstakes

In this dream scenario, the Rangers have now dumped Mika Zibanejad and J.T. Miller’s contracts, traded for a star, and drafted two top prospects in back-to-back years. If the Rangers are unable to sign their new star acquisition to an extension, they must re-sign him in free agency. Then, the Rangers must poach one of the other two aforementioned stars who are projected to be free agents in 2028.

Of course, Connor McDavid is the best of the three options. However, getting Brady Tkachuk and Auston Matthews still makes for a dangerous team.

How Realistic Are These Acquisitions?

Contrary to what some may believe, acquiring the stars is the likeliest part of this whole dream plan. Odds are, all three are looking to leave their current team soon. McDavid is undoubtedly frustrated with the Oilers. He wants his teammates to step up, and management needs to finally find a reliable goalie, as Edmonton hasn’t had the greatest goalie history recently.

The Oilers have tried to run the same experiment year after year, and it seems the front office has no intention of finally acquiring the goalie they need. The two-year extension McDavid signed was a message to the Oilers front office to improve his supporting cast. Eventually, that chance will expire if not capitalized on.

Auston Matthews’ situation in Toronto isn’t much better. After giving the eventual champion Panthers a real run for their money in last year’s playoffs, the Leafs lost star Mitch Marner in the offseason, suffered from injuries, and missed the playoffs. The team’s “core four” never lived up to the hype.

To make matters worse, no one stood up for Matthews after the notoriously dirty Radko Gudas ended his season with a knee-to-knee hit. Matthews suffered a torn MCL and a quad contusion. Not many things are worse than having no teammates who will back you up.

Brady Tkachuk’s situation in Ottawa seems to be the most stable of the three stars. He has a full no-trade clause and hasn’t indicated displeasure with the team. However, the Rangers could certainly use a hard-nosed, physical player like him.

Brady and his brother Matthew have both expressed awe at the status of Madison Square Garden, the Rangers’ arena, on their “Wingmen” podcast. And who’s to say that Brady won’t consider a change of scenery to play in his home country amidst the USA vs. Canada hockey rivalry?

The New York Rangers’ Dream Result

Let’s say the Rangers can complete all of the aforementioned tasks. Where does that leave them?

Their roster would be a powerful blend of star power and top-notch youth, a potent formula for a Stanley Cup run. The top line would have Gavin McKenna, Connor McDavid, and either Brady Tkachuk or Auston Matthews.

If it ends up being McDavid and Matthews, they would likely play as a less strictly defined center and winger, similar to how McDavid and Leon Draisaitl currently complement each other in Edmonton. If it ends up being McDavid and Tkachuk, Tkachuk would take the left wing spot while McKenna moves to the right.

The second line would be Gabe Perreault, Vincent Trocheck, and Alexis Lafrenière. Trocheck and Lafrenière have proven they can play well together, and if Perreault isn’t the right fit, he could always swap with McKenna on the first line.

The defense corps would have Vladislav Gavrikov, Adam Fox, and Landon Dupont. Dupont is bound to learn a thing or two from Gavrikov and Fox, one of the league’s best defensemen. Igor Shesterkin would remain as the starting netminder, the best playoff goalie on God’s green Earth.

It is up to the GM to figure out the rest of the roster. Given the amount of top talent on this roster, it would be very difficult to screw up. If this all comes to fruition, the New York Rangers would undoubtedly become a top-five Stanley Cup contender for the 2028-29 season.

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